Tag Archives: healthcare.gov

Why March 31 is Far More Important –Particularly for Younger Americans

The media has described November 30 as the administration’s “self-imposed” enrollment deadline, but in fact conservatives—and the media itself—insisted on a date, demanding, over and over again, that the administration answer the “$400 million question”: How long will it take to fix the Federal Exchange?

Younger Americans Are Not as Intimidated by Website Snags

There is absolutely no reason to think that 20-something and 30-somethings are more frustrated with the technical glitches than anyone else. There is, in fact, every reason to think that young Americans are not nearly as bothered by software bugs.

First, keep in mind that most Millennials haven’t even tried to sign up. This is because they are not as anxious as older, sicker Americans about securing insurance.

But when they do go to the Healthcare.gov website, a twenty-something is likely to have an easier time than a 50-something when trying to work his way around glitches. Unlike many of their elders, Millennials solve software snags every day – at home, at work, at school. Twenty-five-year-olds who have grappled with Windows 8 will not be daunted–or surprised—by a few bugs. For many younger Americans working through such problems is almost intuitive.

As for the application process, Bennett says: “Before, trying to get insurance was so difficult that surprisingly even with all of the bugs, I still found [the Exchange website] simpler (In the past, people attempting to buy their own coverage in the individual market had to provide carriers with detail medical information, in order to prove that they were not suffering from a pre-existing condition. Under Obamacare, that isn’t necessary. Insurers can no longer use your medical records as an excuse to jack up your premiums.

“So for us this is a huge win,” Bennett concludes, “because we’re paying what we think is fair. And yes it’s more than before, but we actually have coverage that we like now.”

As of October 24, Cadigan and Bennett were just two of some 700,000 Americans who have filed applications in the Exchanges. The truth is that Obamacare’s websites are working– though not in all states.

Make no mistake: enrolling millions of American in Obamacare represents an enormous challenge. But we know that it can be done — because it is being done, and done well– in many states.

Unfortunately this is not a story that sells newspapers, especially when a program is as controversial as Obamacare.

State vs. Federal Exchanges

The marketplaces that are working best are in states that chose to set up their own Exchanges.

Originally, conservatives in Congress argued that states should be able to construct—and control– their own online sign-up sites. The Affordable Care Act offered them that opportunity.

But after thinking it over, 26 states (24 of them led by Republicans) refused. In these 26 states, it was left to the Feds to run “Healthcare.gov.”

Health IT pioneer Fred Trotter says he is “not at all surprised” by what happened next: Computers and human navigators have been overwhelmed by the sheer size of a sprawling project. Technical glitches have created virtual gridlock.